[Virginia Sanchez]

2. Then watch the presentation “Lo comparisons reedit.avi”
https://www.dropbox.com/home/Prof.%20Masiello’s%20class%20presentaions?preview=Lo+comparisons+reedit.avi
3. After watching, write down your reactions to the following:
a. Which version, the first in black & white or the second in color seems closer to the novel?
I believed the colored version is closer to the novel in its depictions of the characters. In the novel, Humbert is described as a handsome man as he would be admired by woman more suitable for his age group. In the colored film, his appearance matches more closely what I envisioned, a stereotypical handsome man with a slightly creepy vibe.
b. What are your opinions of the actors playing Humbert, Charlotte, Lolita, and Quilty?
In my opinion, the actors in the colored film fit well with the descriptions in the novel. For instance Charlotte with her square face and dark hair, Quilty with his threatening atmosphere, Humbert with his typical handsome features, and Lolita an overtly confident and playful young girl.
Are they as you pictured them as you began the book?
Yes, they are somewhere along what I imagined.
(Please note: the young actresses playing Lolita were reportedly both 14 at the time of filming though one looks older though the character is supposed to be younger. Also note that the 1962 version reflects the cars, clothing, and hairstyles of when it was filmed, while the 1998 version is made to look like the authentic time of the novel – the late 1948 to 1953.)
c. Why do you think a blonde actress was cast as Lolita, whose hair color is different in the novel?
Perhaps it was due to the perception blondes had developed at the time. “Simple minded”, care-free sex symbols such as Marilyn Monroe, Jean Harlow, and Mae West. By the time the 1962 film released the directors may have felt it was more fitting for the character.
4. What did you notice about the two different versions of Louise, the maid?
In the black and white film the maid passes the note off to Humbert, while in Lolita’s room, and leaves just as quick as she came. We see no reactions of the sort as we are unable to see her face. However, in the colored version of the film, the maid shows more character, while passin the note off to Humbert she looks at him with suspicion and almost discomfort.
5. What differences in tone do you sense in these two films? Why do you think the 1962 version has more humor?
In the black and white film the tone is more comedic as shown in the car scene while the “family” is watching a film together they pile there hands together in a way that suggests the director meant it as a joke. While the entirety of the colored film has an air of eerieness to it.
6. Next, please watch the presentation called “Cinema If20.avi.”
https://www.dropbox.com/home/Prof.%20Masiello’s%20class%20presentaions?preview=Cinema+I+f20.avi
7. Then, as you did last week, please answer the following
a. Name three different things you feel you learned.
Through this presentation I learned:
The “shaky effect”, often used in films to create a realistic atmosphere, was replicating how an everyday individual would take a video. Originally I believed this effect was replicating the human eye.
The term “Frame within a frame”, when a vocal point is framed by a shape.
The term “Dutch angle” used to describe the tilted camera effect.
b. Mention something you liked about the presentation.
I liked the different ideas low angles signified “nervousness” or inspired “empathy” instead of the usual “inferior” perception.
c. Ask at least one question that now comes to mind about this presentation.
Where did the term “Dutch angle” originate from?